(WASHINGTON, D.C.) – Judicial Watch, the public interest group that investigates and prosecutes government corruption, today joined with other government watchdog groups in calling on House lawmakers to strengthen, not weaken, the congressional ethics process.

Judicial Watch and several other good-government organizations held a joint press conference in response to reports that House Republicans and Democrats were considering changes to the rules for bringing and investigating ethics complaints against House lawmakers.  Among the reported rules changes, which are expected to be considered Jan. 4 by the House, is one that would require complaints to be dismissed if the Ethics Committee vote to conduct an investigation were tied.  The panel has an equal number of Republicans and Democrats.  Another change would drop as an ethics violation conduct that “creates the appearance of corruption.”  That standard would be replaced with one that would limit ethics violations to those that involve explicit criminal behavior or illegal activity.

Judicial Watch and the other groups, known as the Congressional Ethics Coalition, for the past year have been urging the Ethics Committee to break a seven-year “truce” between Republicans and Democrats on filing complaints against each other and to conduct investigations of alleged wrongdoing by several House members.  The committee has undertaken several investigations in recent months.

Now there are reports that House Republicans will replace Joel Hefley (R-Colo.) as chairman of the Ethics Committee in retaliation for the panel’s recent rebukes of some GOP members, including Majority Leader Tom DeLay (R-Texas).

The coalition asked House lawmakers to reject any changes that would discourage members of Congress from filing ethics complaints and urged the leadership in both parties not to retaliate against members who file complaints.  It also urged the House to rescind a 1997 rule that prohibits outside groups or citizens from filing ethics complaints.

“The American people must have faith that Congress can police its own membership,” said Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton.  “The House should rewrite some of the House ethics rules, but the changes should strengthen the ethics process, not weaken it.”

[Click here to view Tom Fitton’s full statement.  Click here to read the Congressional Ethics Coalition press release. The press conference can be viewed on CSPAN tonight at 9:42.]